Someone to watch over her
by irish
Summary: Darien is drawn to a woman he has been assigned to protect


1 Someone to watch over her  
  
Author's note - This was the first Invisible Man fic I wrote but I couldn't think of a title for it. Even now I'm not that happy with the title. BTW I am enjoying everybody's stories on this list. I haven't had a chance to comment on individual ones but they are all very good.  
  
2  
  
3 Summary: - Darien is drawn to a woman he is assigned to protect who is a material murder witness  
  
Rating: - R  
  
Content:- Drama, Romance, Angst  
  
Disclaimer: - Darien, Bobby, The Official, Claire, Eberts and Chrysalis are the property of Stu Segal Productions and The Sci Fi Channel. Saskia, Roger and Danny as well as some others belong to me. (irish – January 2002)  
  
*****  
  
"Jean Jacques Rousseau once said that man was born free but everywhere he is in chains. Well in my case I think no truer statement was made but as strange as it may seem I'm beginning to like working for The Agency. I never thought I would say that, believe me! But it's starting to feel like a family. Granted not the family I would have chosen if I had a choice but still … it beats jail. I would be a lot happier though if they could find a way of getting that goddamn quicksilver gland out of my head. Yeah it has it usefulness at times but there are times I would like my life back."  
  
Darien woke up from a sleepless night of tossing and turning. He didn't know why but this was his fifth sleepless night. He lay in the bed and looked at the clock. It was 3.30. He decided to get up and go for a walk.  
  
Saskia Winston looked over her shoulder and smiled when she saw her boss walking down the alleyway. It looked like he had clinched the deal that he was talking about for months. They had been up all night negotiating the deal and now she was ready for a few weeks off.  
  
"We did it, Saskia," Her boss, Roger Thomson, said when he reached the car.  
  
"That's great, Roger" replied Saskia taking the brief from his hand and looking through the papers.  
  
"This time tomorrow we'll be drinking champagne and living the high life," Thomson said as they both got into the car to go back to the office.  
  
Darien walked the streets for an hour and a half. When he was a thief he loved this time. Not quite night and not quite daytime yet. It was a time when he carried out his robberies. Now he hated it. He suddenly realised that he had walked into an area of the city he used to frequent when he was a thief. It wasn't a very safe area. There were at least 15 muggings and a lot more assaults a week. He was about to cross the road when he saw a car speeding down the street. He jumped back on the sidewalk just as the car missed him by inches.  
  
"Hey, watch were you are going!" he shouted after the car and then muttered "idiots" under his breath.  
  
Thomson was just finished looking over the papers when he heard a knock on the door of his office.  
  
"Come in," he said.  
  
"Mr Thomson," said the man.  
  
Thomson looked up in shock when he saw who it was.  
  
"You screwed us on the deal," the man said.  
  
"This was business," Thomson said.  
  
"So is this," replied the man and shot Thomson in the head. Thomson slumped to the ground with blood pouring from his head.  
  
Saskia had been at the coffee machine when she heard the gunshot. She jumped and almost spilled hot coffee on herself. She ran to the office and saw that the door was open. She watched as another gunshot was fired and then saw the man come out. She hid behind her desk and waited for him to leave the premises.  
  
Darien arrived at the Agency in the afternoon. Although what constituted a normal time to arrive at the agency was beyond him. He was walking up the stairs when Eberts stopped him.  
  
"The Official wants to see you," Eberts said.  
  
"Ah Christ. I took the morning off. I'm not late," moaned Darien.  
  
"It's not about your timekeeping, Fawkes. Although it should be as your timekeeping is…"  
  
"Shut up," Darien said walking off towards The Official's office with Eberts following him.  
  
"Fawkes. Good of you to join us," The Official said as Darien opened the door.  
  
"I've already had the lecture," Darien said indicating Eberts behind him.  
  
"I have an assignment for you," The Official said getting down to business.  
  
"Great. It's what I live for," replied Darien sarcastically.  
  
"I'm assigning you to protect a witness," explained The Official handing Darien a file.  
  
"So I'm baby sitting now, am 1?" Darien said taking the file but didn't open it to look at the contents.  
  
"This is more than a baby sitting assignment, Fawkes," replied the Official. "Saskia Winston witnessed a murder."  
  
"So what do I do?" asked Darien.  
  
"Take her to the Sierra safe house for a couple of days. Make sure she is safe. I have other agents out investigating. Back in a minute," replied The Official getting up and went outside. Darien sighed and opened the file. Claire came into the office  
  
"Darien, I know about your assignment. Do you need to come along in case you need a shot?" she said in her impeccable British accent.  
  
"Nah. I think I'll be fine. It's just for a couple of days. I mean what could go wrong," replied Darien showing her the tattoo. It was fully green as he had gotten a shot the day before and hadn't used the quicksilver.  
  
"That's fine Darien. The minute you feel you need one get back here," replied Claire.  
  
"Yes sir. Major sir," joked Darien. Claire smiled and walked over to the door.  
  
"Hey. You seen Hobbes?" asked Darien before she opened it.  
  
"He has Tonsillitis. Should be back in a couple of days," replied Claire.  
  
"Tonsillitis?" asked Darien.  
  
"Afraid so," The Official said coming in the door.  
  
"Fawkes. This is Saskia Winston," The Official said indicating Saskia to come in.  
  
"Hello," she said as she and Darien shook hands. Darien stood looking at her for several minutes before he said anything. The Official was talking but Darien wasn't listening to her.  
  
"Isn't that right Agent Fawkes?"  
  
Darien jumped when he heard The Official talking to him.  
  
"What?" he finally said.  
  
"You are going to make sure nothing happens to Ms. Winston. Stay out of trouble," The Official repeated.  
  
"Uh… Of course," he said smiling at Saskia. Saskia was a pretty woman in her late 20's. She had short brown hair and blue eyes.  
  
"I've explained to Saskia that you would be taking her to the Safe House immediately," The Official said.  
  
"That's right. It's in the middle of nowhere. The only thing you will die of is boredom," laughed Darien. Saskia smiled.  
  
Darien and Saskia set off for the Safe House twenty minutes later.  
  
"When I was a kid I built a tree house. When you are 10 years old everything looks big to you. Including the tree house. Truth was the tree house wasn't that big when you think about it. My point is the Safe House isn't all that great either."  
  
"So tell me about yourself," Darien said to Saskia as he drove out towards the mountains.  
  
"What would you like to know?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Ah… you know the usual stuff. Your vital statistics… how often you…" Darien joked and looked over at Saskia who was looking at him as if he was mad. "Hey I'm kidding. But if we are going to be spending the next few days together I need to have some decent stuff to talk about." He smiled at Saskia who smiled back and looked out the car window.  
  
"Well I was born in Los Angeles. Went to college in Boston. Came to San Diego 5 years ago to work," replied Saskia.  
  
"I see. So this guy was murdered. Any idea why?" asked Darien looking out the rear view mirror. He thought that they were being followed as the same car had been behind them for a while. He started to feel a little uneasy.  
  
"Not that I know of," replied Saskia.  
  
"Why did you come to the agency?" asked Darien.  
  
"My father is an old friend of The Official," replied Saskia.  
  
"AH. I see. Good contacts," Darien said.  
  
"So you tell me about yourself," Saskia said smiling at him.  
  
"Me? Well I'm just your average guy," replied Darien with a wry smile.  
  
"Really?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Yep. Grew up in the city. Found myself on the wrong side of the law at times. And now.."  
  
"Now you are working for the agency. How did you manage to go from being on the wrong side of the law to working for The Agency?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Well it just sort of happened. I sorta became visible to them," laughed Darien.  
  
"What's so funny?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Nothing. It's just a joke," replied Darien looking at Saskia but it was obvious she didn't understand what he meant. He checked the rear view mirror again and saw that the car that he thought was following them was gone. He relaxed a little bit more. Then it began to rain.  
  
"How much further?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Another 10 miles," replied Darien. All of a sudden he felt the car going over something and he lost control of the wheel. He tried to regain control of the car but the car slipped down the embankment beside the highway before coming to a rest beside a tree.  
  
"Aw crap," muttered Darien as the car came to a standstill. He looked over at Saskia and saw that she was fine. He got out of the car and helped Saskia out. The two stood in the rain which was getting heavier now and there was a few rumbles of thunder.  
  
"What the hell are we going to?" asked Saskia.  
  
"I dunno," replied Darien looking back at the highway. He looked back at the car and assessed the damage of the car. The car looked to be a wreck from the roll down the hill. He got back in and tried the engine but it wouldn't start.  
  
"And I thought you were supposed to protect me," Saskia said.  
  
Darien looked at her and was about to say something but then realised that it wouldn't do any good to insult her. All of a sudden they heard a shout from the road. They looked up and saw a man standing at the top of the hill.  
  
"Hey you folks all right there?" he asked as he climbed down the embankment. The badge on his coat said he was the sheriff.  
  
"Yeah. We're fine," replied Darien.  
  
"Looks to be quite a mess there," the sheriff said indicating the car.  
  
"It is," replied Saskia.  
  
"Where are you folks headed?" asked the sheriff.  
  
"To the old lodge off highway 5," replied Darien.  
  
"That old place has been locked up for years," the sheriff said.  
  
"I know," replied Darien.  
  
"Well I can give you folks a ride to the old lodge," the sheriff said.  
  
"That would be great," replied Saskia picking up the overnight bag which had fallen out of the car from the crash. She handed it to Darien who said nothing but looked at her in annoyance. He picked up his own bag and struggled up the hill with them.  
  
They arrived at the Safe House soon after that. The house was very old and looked like it was about to fall down at any time. There were some windows broken and some roof tiles were banging on the roof  
  
"Are you sure you folks are staying here?" asked the sheriff.  
  
"Yeah," replied Darien. "We're repairing it."  
  
Saskia looked at the house in dismay. She couldn't imagine staying here for the next couple of days. The sheriff said good bye and told them he would try and get the car fixed.  
  
"I can't believe this place," Saskia said as Darien searched in his pockets for the keys.  
  
"I know. You think the agency would spend some money on doing up the safe house. Then again the fat man is a stingy…." Darien muttered to himself.  
  
"Excuse me?" asked Saskia wondering what Darien was muttering about.  
  
"Nothing. Here's the key," he said producing the key out of his pocket and opened the door.  
  
The two gasped as the smell of rot and other things met them.  
  
"That's it. I'm not staying here," Saskia said and turned to go out the door. Darien grabbed her by the arm.  
  
"Hey hold on. Your life is in danger," he said.  
  
"As strange as it may seem I do like my comforts," replied Saskia in annoyance. "This has to be a joke."  
  
"It's no joke Saskia," replied Darien grimly looking around the house. He walked over to a cupboard and opened it. He started to tap on it inside.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" asked Saskia watching him banging on the inside of the cupboard.  
  
"Sssshhh," he said putting his ear to the back of the cupboard. All of a sudden the back of the cupboard swung open and Saskia saw that a staircase was behind it.  
  
"Here we go," Darien said turning on the light and helping Saskia down the stairs.  
  
They climbed down the stairs and came to another door. Darien tried the door and found it locked. He looked around and saw a panel on the wall. He opened it and placed his palm on the sensor. The door swung open and a light went on. Darien and Saskia stepped through the door which shut behind them immediately. They looked around. They were in what looked to be an underground bunker.  
  
"It's an old WW2 bomb bunker," explained Darien. "The Agency bought it and built the house on top and let that house fall into disrepair so no-one would find the bunker."  
  
Saskia looked around. The bunker itself was about half the size of a baseball field. There was a small sofa, couple of chairs and a small dining table in the lounge. A computer and a TV sat in the corner. A small galley kitchen lay just off the kitchen. Beyond the lounge room was a bedroom with an ensuite bathroom. Another bathroom was just off the lounge area as well.  
  
"Wow," Saskia said as she looked around. Darien turned on the computer to check the email. He saw that there were at least 10 emails from Eberts and The Official  
  
"I know what those are about. I damage anything and I pay for it," he muttered turning off the computer without looking at the emails.  
  
"So are you impressed?" Darien asked Saskia.  
  
"Well it ain't exactly the Ritz," she replied. Darien laughed and then realised that they were both still dripping wet from the rain. "Listen why don't get yourself dry?"  
  
Saskia nodded and took her bag into the bedroom. She suddenly realised that there was only one bed. She went back out.  
  
"There's only one bed," she said.  
  
"What?" asked Darien.  
  
"There's only one bed," she repeated. Darien went into the bedroom and saw the bed. He scratched the back of his head and wondered what to do. He then went back out into the lounge area and looked at the sofa.  
  
"EM. You can have the bed. I'll sleep on the sofa," he said squirming at the thought of sleeping on the sofa bed. He would have to sleep on it with his legs sticking over it.  
  
"Are you sure? I mean I could take the sofa and you can take the bed," replied Saskia looking at it.  
  
"No, No. It's fine. Really," Darien replied.  
  
"Darien, Your legs are too long. You take the bed," insisted Saskia.  
  
"No. No. I'll be fine on the sofa. Really," Darien said.  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Don't worry about me. I'm a big boy," replied Darien sitting down on the sofa.  
  
"Well Ok. I am going to take a shower," Saskia said picking up her bag. She carried it into the bedroom. A couple of minutes later Darien heard her crying "OH, No."  
  
He ran to the bedroom door and knocked on it. "Saskia? You all right?"  
  
Saskia opened the door. She was clad in only a towel.  
  
"The rain soaked through my bag and everything is soaking wet. I have nothing to wear now," she said holding the towel up to her. Darien stared at her and then looked away.  
  
"Well I think the towel looks great," Darien said with a grin.  
  
Saskia looked at him in annoyance and then smiled.  
  
Darien went over to his own bag and found that his clothes were dry. He took out a T – shirt and handed it to Saskia.  
  
"It's only on loan. It's my favourite one," he said to her. Saskia took the T-shirt, said goodnight and went back into the room. Darien watched her go back into the room and then sat down on the sofa. He turned the TV on and after flicking through all the channels discovered that it wasn't hooked up to cable.  
  
"I hate this job, I hate this goddamn place…" Darien muttered to himself as he turned the TV off and tried to settle into a comfortable position on the sofa.  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Bobby Hobbes walked into The Official's office the following morning.  
  
"Hey I'm back," he said to his boss.  
  
"I thought you'd be off for a few days," replied The Official.  
  
"It's just a sore throat sir," Bobby said.  
  
"So are you ok to work?" asked The Official.  
  
"Yep," replied Hobbes.  
  
"Ok. Take the lead in this investigation," The Official said handing him a file.  
  
"Sure thing chief," Bobby said reading through the file.  
  
"Don't let me down on this Bobby," the Official said.  
  
"I won't Chief. Where's Fawkes?" Bobby asked of his partner.  
  
"He took Saskia to the Safe House for a couple of days," replied The Official.  
  
"How come Fawkes gets to go to the Safe House?" asked Bobby who seemed to be a bit disappointed.  
  
"Because I wanted him to," replied The Official.  
  
Eberts walked into the office. "Sir," he said  
  
Bobby and The Official looked up at him.  
  
"What?" The Official said.  
  
"I've checked the emails that I sent to the Safe House and they haven't been looked at or replied to," Eberts said.  
  
"Well you know Fawkes. Send him to the Safe House with a pretty girl and he'll pretty much ignore the rules," Hobbes said smirking.  
  
"Hobbes will you get started on the investigation? Now!" barked The Official.  
  
"Yes sir," Bobby said standing up and leaving the room.  
  
Darien had spent an uncomfortable night on the sofa. He finally fell asleep around 4 in the morning but woke up at 6. He lay on the sofa with his legs dangling over the edge for a while thinking about how much his life had changed in the last year. If he had a choice between his past life as a thief and the one he had now as a secret agent who could go insane from too much quicksilver he decided he would rather be the secret agent without the quicksilver gland. He decided to get up after a while. His hair, which usually stood on end, was standing up more than ever. He started to make some coffee. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. He heard the bedroom door open and saw Saskia standing there in his T-shirt.  
  
"I just made some coffee," he said.  
  
"Great," replied Saskia coming out of the bedroom.  
  
"How did you sleep?" asked Darien handing her a coffee mug.  
  
"Like crap," replied Saskia drinking from the mug.  
  
"Tell me about it," replied Darien.  
  
"So what are we going to do today?" asked Saskia.  
  
"Well one thing is for sure. I ain't staying holed up in here all day," replied Darien. All of a sudden he heard the doorbell from upstairs ringing. Darien looked at Saskia and put his finger to his lips. He got up and went upstairs. He looked through the blinds of the window and saw that it was the Sheriff. He opened the door.  
  
"Howdy," the sheriff said.  
  
"Hey," replied Darien.  
  
"You folks have a good night here?" asked the sheriff looking behind Darien.  
  
"Yeah, It's a lot more comfortable than you think," said Darien with a small smile.  
  
"I just thought I'd let you know that we got your car towed up from the embankment last night and the mechanic looked at it this morning and said it would take about a week to fix it," explained the sheriff.  
  
"A week?" Darien queried.  
  
"I'm afraid so," replied the sheriff. "It's only 20 minute walk into the town."  
  
"Oh great. Thanks a lot," Darien said. The sheriff lifted his hat and walked down the path. Darien watched him for a couple of minutes and then closed the door. He looked around the room. Some of the furniture was falling apart and there were a few cobwebs hanging off the light fixtures. Darien shivered hoping he wouldn't see any spiders. He walked back over to the entrance to the safe house downstairs. He heard Saskia's phone ring. He stood on the stairs for a couple of minutes listening.  
  
"I'm fine," he heard her say over the phone.  
  
"Really I'm fine. I'm at their secure location."  
  
"I'll let you know when I do,"  
  
Darien walked in just as Saskia hung up the phone. She looked at him.  
  
"That was my father," she said putting the phone down.  
  
"Oh," replied Darien. "The Sherrif said the car would be ready in a week."  
  
"A week?" asked Saskia looking a bit concerned.  
  
"Yeah,"  
  
"I don't have a week," Saskia said to herself and started to pace up and down.  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Darien  
  
Saskia stopped pacing and realised Darien was looking at her curiously. She smiled.  
  
"Nothing," she said.  
  
"Wait a minute. Is there something you're not telling me here?" asked Darien.  
  
"No," replied Saskia. All of a sudden the phone in the kitchen started to ring. Darien looked at it and then looked at Saskia who walked towards the bedroom. Darien picked up the phone.  
  
"Hey there partner," Bobby said over the phone.  
  
"Hey I heard you were sick," replied Darien smiling when he heard his partner's voice.  
  
"It's just a sore throat," replied Bobby.  
  
"Really. A sore throat. And you are working?"  
  
"Nothing keeps Bobby Hobbes off his job," Bobby said gruffly.  
  
"Oh. You're a martyr to the cause," replied Darien.  
  
"So I heard you were spending some time down there,"  
  
"You heard right," replied Darien.  
  
"Do ya want me to go down there or would you like the place to yourself with the pretty witness," Bobby said.  
  
Darien laughed. "No. Things are fine,"  
  
"Anyway the Fat Man has me on the case," Hobbes said.  
  
"Have you found anything out?" asked Darien.  
  
"Well Thomson was murdered over a property deal," Hobbes started to explain.  
  
"That much I know," replied Darien.  
  
"Well did you know that the property involved was the old army base site outside San Diego?" asked Hobbes.  
  
"That I did not know. I thought the state didn't know what they were going to do with that site," Darien said.  
  
"Well apparently the state sold it to Thomson and Greenberg last year in a hush hush deal. Thomson and Greenberg or rather Thomson resold the site for less than what they paid for it," Hobbes was reading from a computer printout.  
  
"That's why he was murdered. Who did he sell the property to do you know?" asked Darien.  
  
"Well partner that's where it gets interesting," replied Hobbes.  
  
"What?" asked Darien.  
  
"There were a number of parties interested in the buying the property. The party that bought the property was an organisation called Comtek. And guess who is a named director?"  
  
"Who?" asked Darien.  
  
"Our old friend. Stark," replied Hobbes.  
  
"Stark," repeated Darien.  
  
"That's what I said," replied Hobbes.  
  
"What do Chrysalis want with that site?" Darien wondered out loud.  
  
"Dunno. I'm going over to Thomson and Greenberg this afternoon. In the meantime try and pump Saskia for information," Hobbes said chuckling to himself.  
  
"What's so funny?" asked Darien.  
  
"Eberts was wondering why you didn't reply his emails," replied Hobbes.  
  
Darien sighed and then said, "Tell Eberts it's not all fun and games down here. I crashed my car yesterday."  
  
"You crashed your car?" repeated Hobbes.  
  
"Yeah. Apparently it will take a week to fix," Darien said.  
  
"OK. Give me a call when you need a ride out of there," Hobbes said well aware of Darien's situation.  
  
"Ok Buddy. Talk to you later," replied Darien and hung up the phone.  
  
Saskia came out of the bedroom a couple of minutes later. She looked at Darien who was still standing at the phone looking thoughtful.  
  
"Penny for 'em," she said.  
  
"What?" Darien asked.  
  
"You look lost in thought," replied Saskia.  
  
"Saskia. Have you ever heard of an organisation called Chrysalis?" Darien asked.  
  
"No. Who are they?" asked Saskia.  
  
"They bought the old site from Thomson. Thomson screwed them over,"  
  
"Roger wouldn't screw anyone over," replied Saskia getting annoyed.  
  
"There's one thing I've learned since I started working for The Agency," Darien said.  
  
"What's that?" asked Saskia.  
  
"You don't mess about with Chrysalis," Darien replied grimly.  
  
Saskia looked at Darien and then looked away. "I don't know anything." She said walking back over to the bedroom.  
  
"Saskia if you witnessed one of the goons from Chrysalis murder your boss then you are in a whole lot of danger," Darien said grabbing her arm. Saskia wouldn't look at him at first but he held onto her arm till she would look at him.  
  
"Darien. Let go," she said.  
  
Darien let her go and knew she wasn't going to say anything else.  
  
"Ok," he said and went over to the bathroom. Saskia watched him as he walked over to the bathroom. She went over to her bag and picked up her cell phone. She pressed a button on her speed dial. She listened to the phone ringing for a couple of minutes before it the phone was answered.  
  
"They found out Comtek was part of Chrysalis," she said to the person on the other end as she walked over to the bedroom.  
  
"Hang tight. We'll get you out of there," replied the person.  
  
"When?" asked Saskia keeping an eye on the bathroom door.  
  
"Tomorrow or the next day,"  
  
"You told me they wouldn't find out," Saskia said in an angry whisper.  
  
"We'll be in touch," the person said and hung up the phone.  
  
Saskia looked at her cell phone in anger and threw it on the bed. She paced the bedroom and wrung her hands.  
  
Chapter 3  
  
Bobby pulled up outside the offices of Thomson and Greenberg. He glanced around the street and took off his sunglasses. He went through the revolving door and walked up to the receptionist.  
  
"Hi," he said to the receptionist.  
  
"Hello. How can I help you?" asked the receptionist.  
  
"Well….Gloria…" Bobby said glancing at the nametag on the receptionist.  
  
"Actually its how can I help you," flirted Bobby leaning over on the desk. Gloria giggled.  
  
"How about a drink…or dinner?" Bobby asked smiling at her.  
  
"Um that would be nice. But I am not allowed to date potential clients," replied Gloria.  
  
"OH, if I said I wasn't a potential client?" asked Bobby taking out his ID and showing it to her.  
  
Gloria looked at the ID. "That would be fine then," she said.  
  
"I'm investigating Roger Thomson's murder. I was wondering if you could answer a few questions," Bobby said.  
  
"Such a terrible thing to happen to such a nice man," replied Gloria tears forming in her eyes.  
  
"How long have you worked here?" asked Bobby looking around the lobby. He spotted a security camera.  
  
"5 years," replied Gloria dabbing her eyes with a Kleenex.  
  
"What do you know about his personal assistant, Saskia Winston?" asked Bobby handing her another Kleenex.  
  
"I didn't know her that well. She kept to herself. I think she felt it was beneath her to associate with the likes of me," sniffed Gloria.  
  
"How long did she work for Thomson?" Bobby asked.  
  
"Not long. About a month I guess," Gloria started to cry again.  
  
"Not a great way to start your first month. Do you know what she did before working for Thomson?" Bobby asked handing her another Kleenex and waited patiently for Gloria to stop crying.  
  
"No. Like I said I didn't know her that well," replied Gloria.  
  
"Hmm. Is there anyway I could get a look at the security videos?" asked Bobby.  
  
"The police took them away," Gloria said blowing her nose.  
  
"Oh I see. Thank you. Have a nice day," Bobby said and started walking toward the front door.  
  
"How about that dinner?" Gloria asked after him. Bobby turned and smiled.  
  
"I'm afraid I'll have to take a rain check on that sweetheart," he said blowing her a kiss. Gloria smiled and watched him walk out the door.  
  
Bobby stood outside the building and took out his cell phone. He wanted to get a look at the security video and he had a contact in the police department. He dialled a number on his cell phone and waited for it to answer.  
  
"Hey Leo. How's it going?" he asked.  
  
"Bobby Hobbes. What can I do for you?" replied Leo.  
  
"I need to check the security videos from the Thomson murder," Bobby said.  
  
"I'm afraid we don't have them," replied Leo.  
  
"What do you mean you don't have them," asked Bobby.  
  
"We had them but they are missing" explained Leo.  
  
"You had them but they are missing," repeated Bobby.  
  
"Do you have to repeat everything I say, Hobbes?" Leo asked in annoyance.  
  
"NO. But can you explain how the security videos went missing from police evidence," asked Bobby in irritation.  
  
"I can't Bobby. They just disappeared," Leo said.  
  
"I'm gonna talk to your boss, kid," replied Bobby and hung up the cell phone. He looked back at the building and then climbed into his van.  
  
Saskia came out of the bedroom. Darien was sitting on the couch drinking coffee. He looked up as Saskia closed the bedroom door.  
  
"I'm sorry. It's just that … I never heard of Chrysalis and this whole thing scares me," she said sitting on the arm of the couch.  
  
"What do you say we get outta here for the rest of the day. Check the town out. It's only a 20-minute walk. We could go for a drink," Darien said.  
  
"That's a good idea. I'll go stir crazy if I stay down here any longer," replied Saskia smiling.  
  
"Ok let's go," Darien said as they both grabbed their jackets and went upstairs.  
  
Bobby went back to The Agency. He was walking past The Official's door but had no intentions on going in when Eberts opened the door.  
  
"Robert. The Official wants to see you," Eberts said.  
  
"Robert. The Official wants to see you," repeated Bobby in irritation but followed Eberts back into the room.  
  
"Hobbes. How's the investigation going?" The Official said as soon as Bobby sat down in front of his boss.  
  
"Well the Thomson sold the old army base to Comtek which has connections to our old pal Stark," Bobby said.  
  
"So Chrysalis is involved," The Official said looking worried.  
  
"Yep. We know why Thomson was murdered now," replied Bobby.  
  
"Have you spoken to Fawkes today?" asked The Official.  
  
"Yeah I filled him in on this already," Bobby said.  
  
"Ok. I was hoping to keep him down there another couple of days but if Chrysalis is involved than damn sure they know that Saskia has come to us," replied The Official.  
  
"Sir if you don't mind me asking…" Bobby started to say.  
  
"Saskia's father and I go back a long time. Saskia's brother, Daniel was involved in a drug bust a few years ago. Was sent to prison. When he came out he never cleaned up his act. He became involved in gunrunning, drugs and other stuff…"  
  
"Are you saying he became involved with Chrysalis?" asked Bobby.  
  
"It looks to be that way," replied The Official.  
  
Bobby sighed. "I think I know what you are getting at, sir," he said. He got up and walked out of the office.  
  
Darien and Saskia had walked into the town. The storm had cleared up leaving the air fresh and less humid than it had been for the last couple of days. They looked around the town. It was only a small town with a couple of stores and a small bar.  
  
"Looks to be a dump," Saskia said looking at the bar.  
  
"Mmm," replied Darien. They walked over to the door and opened it. They went in and walked over to the counter. Darien looked around. It was very dark and gloomy but there was a couple of old timers sitting in the corner. An empty pool table stood at the other end of the room and a JukeBox was blaring. "Mustang Sally" was playing when they sat down at the counter. Darien ordered two beers. He turned to Saskia sitting beside him.  
  
"So do you have any brothers or sisters?" he asked.  
  
Saskia looked at him sharply. "One brother, Danny," she replied.  
  
"Oh I had a brother as well," replied Darien.  
  
"Had?" asked Saskia.  
  
"He died. About a year ago," Darien said.  
  
"I'm sorry," replied Saskia softly. She saw the sadness on Darien's face.  
  
"It's ok," Darien said. "So are you close to your brother?"  
  
"Yeah. There's only a year between us. We are more like twins than anything else. Danny had some problems a few years back but…." She trailed off.  
  
"But what?" asked Darien.  
  
"He's fine now," Saskai replied. Darien looked at Saskia curiously and sensed she wasn't telling him the whole truth. He looked over at the pool table.  
  
"Do you wanna game?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah. Why not," replied Saskia. They both got down from their stools and brought their drinks over to the pool table. Darien started to fix the balls on the table.  
  
Suddenly the door of the bar was pushed open and two bikers came in. One was quite big and was wearing leather trousers and a black T-shirt. He had tattoos all over his arm and his hair was long and straggly. The other was smaller but had his hair tied back. He had a beard.  
  
"Hey Stoney. How about a game of pool," the smaller one said looking over at Darien and Saskia over at the pool table. Stoney looked over and grinned.  
  
"Sure thing," he said.  
  
"This is our game," Stoney said walking over to the pool table while the other guy got a couple of beers. The barman told him not to cause any trouble.  
  
Darien stared at Stoney. Darien was tall but the biker was a lot taller. Darien smiled uneasily.  
  
"Look guys we were here first," he said.  
  
"Yeah but this is our table," the smaller guy said as he leered at Saskia.  
  
"Guys maybe we can compromise," Darien replied looking over at Saskia who was looking a bit uncomfortable with the other guy's attention.  
  
"Compromise?" snorted Stoney.  
  
"Hey Darlin' How about you and I get out of here and we can have our own game," the smaller guy said taking Saskia's arm.  
  
"Hey let her go," Darien said making a move over to Saskia but Stoney blocked him.  
  
"Take you hands off me," Saskia said angrily trying to get the guy to release her grip.  
  
"Feisty little thing. Aren't you?" the guy said.  
  
"Look guys. We don't want any trouble here. Let us play our game," Darien said not willing to back down.  
  
"Like we said. This is our table," replied Stoney.  
  
"Well…. I don't see your name on it," replied Darien.  
  
"Yeah. Well you will see my name on this!" Stoney said punching Darien in the stomach. Saskia gasped as Darien doubled over in pain. Darien stood up again and was about to punch Stoney in the face when Stoney grabbed him and threw him over the pool table. Darien landed on the floor banging his head off the table. He could hear the cheers from the two men. He grabbed the pool cue and quicksilvered. Darien snuck around the table until he was in front of Stoney. He brought the pool cue up and hit Stoney in the crotch. Stoney doubled over in pain as Darien reappeared again and punched him in the face. The other guy jumped on Darien but Saskia grabbed a ball and lobbed it at the guy. It hit him on the head and knocked him out. Darien and Saskia looked at the two men.  
  
"Come on. Let's get out of here," Darien said rubbing the back of his head. He glanced at his tattoo and saw that there were at least three red segments. He hoped he didn't have to do anymore disappearing.  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Bobby hung up the phone. He had called the safe house but there was no answer. He left a message telling Darien to call him. Bobby paced up and down. He tried calling the safe house again but there was still no answer. "Come on, Fawkes. This is no time to go AWOL," he muttered when he hung up the phone. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was getting late. The drive to the Safe House was a 4-hour drive but at this time of the day it could be longer. He picked the phone up again and waited for an answer. The answering system came back on.  
  
"Fawkes. It's me. Call me the minute you get this message," he said to the answering machine.  
  
Darien groaned as Saskia placed a cooling pack on his head. His head hurt like hell from banging it off the pool table.  
  
"Oh would you quit being such a baby. Serves you right for getting in a bar brawl," teased Saskia lifting the cooling pack and looking at his head.  
  
"It hurts," complained Darien.  
  
"For crying out loud, Darien," Saskia said as Darien flinched from her touching his head.  
  
"Don't do anything to the hair," Darien said.  
  
Saskia smiled to herself. "Hey, do you know you are going bald. Oh and what's this. A grey hair!" she said pulling at Darien's hair.  
  
"What!" exclaimed Darien.  
  
"Ooh you are going grey," she teased.  
  
"No. I'm not," Darien said jumping up. He saw the smile on Saskia's face.  
  
"You're teasing," he said.  
  
Saskia laughed "Yeah," she said sitting on the sofa.  
  
Darien looked at her. "That ain't fair," he said.  
  
"No it's not is it?" Saskia said. Darien sat down beside her and didn't say anything for a couple of minutes. He grinned to himself then.  
  
"You know you really shouldn't say things like that. I'm going to have to get you back for that," he said eventually. He turned to Saskia and started to tickle her. Saskia screamed in frustration and asked him to stop. He stopped eventually. The two sat on the sofa laughing.  
  
"Thanks for this afternoon with the two bikers," Saskia said looking at Darien.  
  
"No problem. That's what I am here for," he said smiling at her. Saskia smiled back. They stared at each other for several minutes and then Saskia leaned in to kiss Darien. Darien responded for a couple of seconds but abruptly pulled away from her. He didn't want to have to explain his disappearing act to her.  
  
"It's… not… a good idea," he said standing up.  
  
"Oh right. You don't mix business with pleasure," she said.  
  
"Yeah, Something like that," Darien replied looking at the floor and then looking back up at her.  
  
"I should have known," Saskia said.  
  
"Maybe when this is over…." Darien said.  
  
"Yeah," replied Saskia. "I'm getting some air." She got up and went upstairs. Darien watched her go. He decided to follow her when he noticed the answering machine. The screen indicated that there were 16 messages on it. He pressed the button.  
  
"Fawkes, this is Eberts. I just wanted to let you know…"  
  
Darien sighed and deleted all the messages and then followed Saskia out.  
  
Saskia walked towards the river. She heard some rustling in the trees beside the river. She looked over and thought she could make someone out behind the trees. She looked toward the house and saw Darien coming toward her.  
  
"I think there is someone in the forest. I could hear rustling," she said to him. Darien looked over at the trees.  
  
"Ok. Stay here. I'll check it out," he said. Darien walked over to the trees and looked around. He made sure he was out of Saskia's sight before turning invisible. But he didn't see anyone around. He let the quicksilver flake off before returning to Saskia.  
  
"I didn't see anyone. It was probably an animal," he said to her.  
  
"I feel silly now," she said looking into the river.  
  
"Don't be," Darien said softly putting his hand on her shoulder. Saskia turned around and stared at Darien.  
  
"I need to tell you something," he said quietly as the quicksilver started to envelop him. Saskia looked in amazement as Darien disappeared in front of her eyes.  
  
"What the hell?" she asked as Darien reappeared again.  
  
"It's complicated," he said.  
  
"It certainly looks it," Saskia said still in amazement. She took Darien's hand and he stroked her hair with it. He kissed her gently on the lips.  
  
"We can take it slowly," Saskia said after she realised she had been kissing an invisible Darien. She then realised that she was too. She stopped kissing him and they both reappeared. Saskia stared at Darien for a minute and then suddenly turned and ran back to the house. Darien called her and then followed her into the house. He grabbed her arm just before she reached the stairs. "This freaked you out," he said to her.  
  
"No….no. It hasn't," replied Saskia.  
  
"Why did you run away then?" Darien asked.  
  
"I ran away because…" Tears started to form in Saskia's eyes.  
  
"Because what?" asked Darien.  
  
"Let me go," Saskia struggled to release the grip Darien had on her.  
  
"What's wrong?" Darien asked seeing the tears in her eyes.  
  
"I don't want to hurt you, Darien. But I will and I don't want to," Saskia cried as Darien finally released the grip on her arm. She wiped the tears from her eyes.  
  
"Look at me Saskia," Darien said gently but Saskia wouldn't  
  
"I can't," replied Saskia.  
  
"Why not?" asked Darien. Saskia didn't say anything but still wouldn't look at him.  
  
"Saskia… I… care about you," he eventually said.  
  
"Darien, No," she said.  
  
"Look at me and tell me you don't feel the same way," said Darien. Saskia looked at the ground and then at Darien.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
I knew I shouldn't get emotionally involved but my feelings for Saskia were running deep. We talked into the night and fell asleep beside each other.  
  
Saskia lay in the bed. She thought about what happened that day. She did care a lot about Darien and couldn't believe her eyes when she saw him turn invisible. She tossed and turned. She knew she couldn't get out of the mess she was in. She looked at the clock beside her. She could hear the soft snores coming from Darien who was fast asleep beside her. She reached for her cell phone and listened to the message on her voice mail. She looked at the clock again and then got up. She got dressed and then opened the bedroom door quietly.  
  
Darien heard Saskia sneaking out. He waited a couple of minutes before getting up and following her out the door. He saw her walking toward the river. He quicksilvered and followed her to the bridge. The sun was just coming up over the ridge.  
  
"Danny," he could hear her whispering. He heard a rustling from the trees and saw a young man coming out of them.  
  
"Are you ready to go?" Danny asked Saskia.  
  
"No," replied Saskia.  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Danny.  
  
"I don't want to be involved," Saskia said looking toward the house.  
  
"Sorry, Sis. You are already involved," Danny said angrily.  
  
"I wish I wasn't. I wish I never agreed to go along with you," Saskia said loudly.  
  
Danny laughed. "Keep your voice down or you will wake The Invisible Man,"  
  
"How do you know about that?" asked Saskia.  
  
"The rustling in the bushes you heard this afternoon. That was I. I saw everything that was going on. I saw him turn invisible," replied Danny with a smirk. "Little sister. It wasn't in the plan for you to fall for him though. Just seduce him. You know… it was very noble of him not to have sex with you just to preserve his sanity."  
  
"Leave him out of this," Saskia said.  
  
"No," replied Danny.  
  
"I should never agreed to help you," Saskia said shaking her head.  
  
"Well you did. You're an accessory. You'll get life for helping me murder your boss," laughed Danny.  
  
"I'm telling Darien in the morning," replied Saskia.  
  
Danny laughed again.  
  
"How did you ever get to be so evil," Saskia said looking at her brother in disgust.  
  
"It's not me that's evil. It's the whole corrupt government," replied Danny.  
  
"Oh and you think Chrysalis is the answer," Saskia said angrily.  
  
"Chrysalis will be the answer once they take over the government and that agency your invisible boyfriend works for," Danny said.  
  
"You are crazy,"  
  
"No I believe that will be Fawkes if he uses too much quicksilver," laughed Danny.  
  
Darien looked around him and saw a fallen branch off a tree. He picked it up and started to walk towards Danny and Saskia.  
  
"I could call him," Darien heard her say.  
  
"Don't be so stupid, Sassy," replied Danny. "Come on. We are being picked up in 10 minutes." Danny grabbed Saskia's arm and started to pull her into the forest.  
  
"Danny stop," cried Saskia. Danny didn't answer but continued to pull her by the arm.  
  
"Hey didn't you hear what she said?" Darien said reappearing.  
  
"Well Fawkes. What a surprise," Danny said looking at the tree branch in Darien's hands. Saskia ran to Darien's side.  
  
"Darien!" exclaimed Saskia in surprise.  
  
"You couldn't tell me?" Darien said looking at Saskia.  
  
"I'm sorry," replied Saskia putting her hand on his arm. Darien shook it off in anger.  
  
"So you were just using me?" asked Darien.  
  
"No. It wasn't like that," replied Saskia looking over at Danny. Danny had his hand in one of his pockets.  
  
"So what was it then?" asked Darien dropping the tree branch.  
  
Saskia looked to the ground but didn't answer. Darien shook his head and then turned and started to walk toward the house.  
  
"Darien!" Saskia shouted after him and was about to follow him when Danny grabbed her arm.  
  
"Saskia. Come on," he said.  
  
Saskia shook his hand off and started to follow Darien. She stopped when she felt the cold metal of a gun at the back of her head.  
  
"You gotta work out where your loyalties lie, Sis," Danny said as he clicked the safety off the gun.  
  
"Danny, please," Saskia pleaded as Danny grabbed her around the neck and started to walk towards the house.  
  
"Hey Fawkes. Are you going to say good bye to your girlfriend," Danny yelled.  
  
Darien turned and looked shocked at the sight in front of him.  
  
"Hey man. Let her go," shouted Darien and started to walk towards the two.  
  
"I'm not going down alone," yelled Danny waving the gun at Darien.  
  
"You don't have to go down at all. We can go to the Official. Get it sorted out, man," Darien said. He looked over to the road and saw that several agency agents were in position. He saw Hobbes standing beside his van.  
  
"No," shouted Danny. He put the gun back on Saskia's head. Saskia was openly crying now.  
  
"Look man. Behind you are a bunch of agents that will open fire at you. You'll have no chance. Do the decent thing and give yourself up," Darien asked. Danny started to cry but then threw Saskia to the ground and opened fire on the agents. The agents shot back and several bullets hit Danny in the chest. He fell to the ground.  
  
"Danny," screamed Saskia as she ran over to her brother who was struggling to breathe. A trickle of blood came from his mouth. Saskia put one hand on his chest and the other at the back of his head and wept as Darien watched.  
  
"I'm sorry," Saskia said to Darien as one of the agents placed her handcuffs.  
  
Darien looked at her but didn't reply. She had bloodstains on her clothes. Darien turned away and started to walk towards Bobby's van. Bobby followed him.  
  
"So that's that," Bobby said.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it Hobbes," Darien said angrily.  
  
"Look partner. You know not to get emotionally involved…" Bobby started to say but what he was going to say next was drowned out by the sound of a helicopter.  
  
Everyone looked up and saw a helicopter circle the grounds. Suddenly a shot rang out. The other agents took their guns out and started firing at the helicopter but it flew up over the trees.  
  
"No," shouted Darien when he saw Saskia on the ground. He ran over and kneeled beside her. There was a bullet wound to her stomach.  
  
"Help me," she whispered her eyes opening up in fear.  
  
"Sshh. It's gonna be ok. Take it easy. We're gonna get you to a hospital," Darien said stroking her hair. He looked over at the other agent who was shot in the arm.  
  
"Somebody get an ambulance here," Darien shouted, as Saskia's breathing became more ragged. Bobby ran over and stood watching his partner as he cradled Saskia in his arms.  
  
Epilogue  
  
"So Danny had Saskia help him in Thomson's murder," The Official said reading through the report.  
  
"Yes sir. From what we understand Danny started to work for Chrysalis two years ago. When the state was selling the old army base Chrysalis put in a bid for it but were turned down. Thomson and Greenberg bought it. Chrysalis bought it from Thomson and Greenberg but Stark must have realised that Thomson screwed them over. Hired Danny to do the hit. Danny got Saskia to help him and the rest we know," Bobby explained as he sat in front of his boss.  
  
"Why did Saskia come to us?" asked The Official.  
  
"Well Saskia didn't want to be involved but Danny persuaded her to. I don't think she really knew what was going to happen," replied Bobby. "It was part of the plan,"  
  
"I see," sighed The Official.  
  
"What's going to happen to her sir?" Bobby asked.  
  
"Well when she recovers from the gunshot wound she will be charged with accessory to murder. I don't think she will get immunity either," replied The Official putting away the file.  
  
Bobby was silent for a couple of minutes.  
  
"Where's Fawkes?" asked The Official  
  
"He, uh, went to get a shot," replied Bobby.  
  
"Ok. Tell him to take a couple of days off," replied The Official.  
  
Bobby raised his eyes at the statement. The Official glared at him but said nothing. Bobby got the hint and left the room. He went to look for Darien. He tried the Keep but Claire told him he had taken off a while ago.  
  
Bobby had looked for Darien all over the agency. He then tried Darien's place but he wasn't there either. Bobby drove around looking for him. He couldn't find him anywhere. Bobby then drove to the beach. He saw Darien sitting on the sand. His head was in his arms and he was looking out at the ocean. Bobby walked towards him.  
  
"Hey partner, Howya doin'? Bobby asked sitting down beside Darien. Darien looked at his friend and partner.  
  
"Just great, Hobbes," replied Darien. He picked up some sand and let it fall between his fingers. He watched as the sand blew away.  
  
"Look partner. You are not the first guy to be fooled by a pretty girl," Hobbes said.  
  
"Yeah Yeah. I know. Don't get emotionally involved and all that crap," Darien said angrily.  
  
"Fawkes. You may not want to hear this right now…" Bobby started to say only to be interrupted by Darien.  
  
"What do I not want to hear right now? What's that? Eh? That this Goddamn thing in my head is never coming out. That I live in fear of gong crazy," Darien shouted. "I want my life back dammit,"  
  
"I understand," replied Bobby feeling the emotions coming from his partner.  
  
"No, Hobbes. You don't," replied Darien. "I cared for Saskia. You know what the crazy thing is?"  
  
"What?" asked Bobby.  
  
"I actually thought it would work. How stupid is that?" Darien laughed to himself.  
  
"It's not stupid," replied Bobby. Darien looked at his partner.  
  
"Come on, let's go," Bobby said. The two men walked back towards the van.  
  
Darien stopped and looked back at the ocean. There were a few surfers out on the ocean.  
  
"Hey you ever surf?" he asked.  
  
"Me. Of course. I was the surf champion three years in a row," boasted Bobby.  
  
"Oh yeah. What happened?" asked Darien as they started to walk again.  
  
"I kept thinking my surf buddies were trying to kill me," replied Bobby.  
  
Darien laughed "Paranoid surfer," he said getting into the van.  
  
"Yeah that was the start of my problems," replied Bobby.  
  
"Tennyson once wrote that it's better to have loved and lost then to have never loved at all. Well… I don't agree.  
  
The End 


End file.
